The Rock – The Red Carpet People’s Champ

When The Rock was hit with the GTS at Raw 1000, it was the first track that was laid down for the road to WrestleMania 29. If you used your brain a little, you could see that Rock would come back for revenge and beat CM Punk for his WWE title.

What would it mean? For many, it would be a mistake because The Rock isn’t a full-time performer and it would be a slap in the face to Punk (but mostly to his fans). But if you looked at the bigger picture, the Rock had films coming out (including GI Joe, which will do stellar box office) that he needed to promote and he could also be promoting his title match at WrestleMania while on the red carpet.

It’s a little short-sighted, but WWE’s year is short-sighted. They ramp everything toward WrestleMania and it’s all about creating extra visibility outside of the normal reach of their audience. We’ll find out when the final receipts have been counted for WrestleMania 29, but this is the kind of visibility they usually kill for.

The show should be a major success. I’m sure this is exactly what Vince McMahon had in mind when he put Hulk Hogan in No Holds Barred. It just came 25 years later.